Harold Hamm (billionaire owner of Continental oil) estimates the Bakken oil field will produce six times (24 billion barrels) the oil of the EIA estimate. Harold Hamm also believes that the San Joaquin Monterey California fields are the next big horizontal drilling play.

The West Coast region includes shale oil plays in the San Joaquin and Los Angeles Basins. Located within these basins is the Monterey/Santos shale oil play with a total area estimated at 1,752 square miles. The reviewed play has an average EUR of 550 MBO per well and approximately 15.42 Bbbl of technically recoverable oil.

The active area for the Monterey/Santos shale play is approximately 1,752 square miles in the San Joaquin and Los Angeles Basin. The depth of the shale ranges from 8,000 to 14,000 feet deep and is between 1,000 and 3,000 feet thick. The shale oil play has an average EUR of 550 MBO per well and approximately 15.42 Bbbl of technically recoverable oil.